How much should I request as a raise?

misslucy : We receive annual cost of living raises that are usually around 3 or 3.5 percent. The highest I’ve gotten is 5.5 and that was because I had grown a lot in my role that year. Do you think I should only ask for 5.5 considering I had received that before when I had similarly taken on more responsibility?

Do you have anyone else in your industry to go to for advice? TBH I think it’s bad advice to say not to ask for a raise at all, or settle for less. If I were you, I would find a male and ask their opinion on what they would do. Many women would not ask for a raise, and even in the article I posted a female manager was not used to people asking for raises. That doesn’t mean it doesnt happen and it doesnt mean you aren’t worth it.

beeyouteefal : I definitely am still going to ask for a higher raise. I just have to settle on a number.

Unfortunately, none of my friends are in the same industry. I’ve asked my husband his opinion and he was surprised I was asking for a higher raise but I think that’s because he’s never asked for one either.

NikkiBee18 : I’m late to this party, but I think you need to re-frame your ask: you’re not asking for a 10% annual raise, you’re asking for a one-time “salary adjustment” to bring your pay up to market rate. It sounds like you’ve done some industry research and realize you are underpaid so who cares if the company’s annual COL pool is 2-3% or if you got a 5% raise once for growing a lot that year? You’re still underpaid and as a valuable employee, you’d like to see your employer step up to the plate to compensate you fairly.

Ask for 10%. Present industry pay research as well as documentation of what you bring to the company.

And never, ever choose not to negotiate your pay before accepting a job offer again.

dgirl715 : Thank you for pointing this out! Because I’m not really asking for a merit raise, I’m asking to be brought up to market value. And 10% still only brings me up to the low end of average. I have lots of research that I can show.

I definitely will never not negotiate again. I feel so stupid. I’ve lost out on thousands and thousands of dollars, not just in salary but in 401(k) contributions. The problem is I was hoping to stay here for a long time but now if they aren’t willing to match market I might have to start looking just so I don’t spend years losing out on potential earnings.

NikkiBee18 : A 10% increases brings you to the low end of industry pay? Does your org have a reputation for poor pay? Do you have other perks that are better than average in your industry like summer Fridays or a 10% 401k match? And what kind of number is 10% – are you underpaid by $2500 or $8000? How much experience do you have compared to the average worker in your position in your industry?

dgirl715 : I work at an association so that might be part of it. Our 401k match is pretty meh. We get pretty good vacation time. After 4 years I got bumped up to 3 weeks. Our health insurance is pretty good also.

According to my research, I’ll need to make about another $4500 to reach the low end of the average range and the average person in my position has 3-5 years experience and I’ve been at my company for 4 and I was doing related work at another company for 2.

I honestly think the problem is that I was underpaid at my last company and then this company asked what I had been making and based their offer off of that. Then I was an idiot and didn’t counter.

NikkiBee18 : I asked and got a 18% raise. I brought in accomplishments, and justification and fair market value for why I deserved the raise. Always aim higher so that if you have to settle, you can hopefully get closer to what you wanted in the first place. Such as you want a 7% raise, ask for a 10% raise.

My employees can ask for a raise all they want, but if their performance doesn’t exceed expectations, then it doesn’t matter. Not to mention, our caps are set by the University System. Last year, no one was given a merit raise across the entire system.